Five PBC Golf Teams Ranked in Preseason Top 25

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Five Peach Belt Conference golf teams have been ranked the Golf World/Nike Golf Coaches 2007 preseason poll. Columbus State begins the season in third, while GCSU is fifth, USC Aiken sixth, Armstrong Atlantic State 12th and Lander 24th.

CSU must replace three seniors from last season's fourth place showing at the National Championship, including the individual medalist Christian Ries. CSU returns two-fifths of the line-up from nationals, including First Team All-American Andrew Georgiou and junior Kyle Albright. The Cougars also added JP van der Walt, a juco transfer that qualified for the U.S. Amateur last week, and freshmen - Hunter Harper, Michael Hicks, and Howard Duffin. The Cougars open the fall portion of its schedule on September 24th with the Coker College Invitational at Orange County National in Orlando, FL.

With only one out of the five starters from last season lost to graduation, the Bobcats have a great deal of returning talent for this season. Sophomore Niclas Johansson, one of those returning members, was named to the 2007 Ping All-American team. GCSU will kick off the 2007 season with its first tournament at the Kiawah Island Invitational Sept. 10-11, hosted by USC Aiken in Kiawah Island, S.C. GCSU finished tied for sixth in the NCAA National Championships last season.

To view the poll, click here.